TNT Orders Pilot for Father/Daughter Crime Drama Bird Dog

Deadline|Hollywood is reporting that TNT has ordered a pilot for Bird Dog, a crime drama in which two cops, a father and daughter, work together as partners in a small Pacific Northwest town.

The article also updates the status of another recently announced potential TNT crime drama, Hollywood & Vine, which has been put on hold due to casting difficulties.

OMN Welcomes Kathleen Ernst, Author of Old World Murder

Omnimystery News is delighted to welcome Kathleen Ernst as our guest blogger. Though Kathleen is well known for her American Girl mysteries, she has just published her first adult mystery, Old World Murder (Midnight Ink Trade Paperback, October 2010, 978-0-7387-2087-6).

Today, Kathleen writes about creating a cop. And she's also providing our readers with an opportunity to win a copy of her book. Visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Kathleen Ernst: Old World Murder" contest link, enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (0779) for a chance to win! (One entry per person; contest ends November 11, 2010.)

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Photo provided courtesy of Kathleen Ernst

When I began planning my new mystery, Old World Murder, I knew from the start that I wanted to have two point-of-view characters. The first, Chloe Ellefson, is curator of collections at a large historic site called Old World Wisconsin. It’s a real place, and I was an interpreter and curator there for twelve years. Writing Chloe? No problem.

The second main character, Roelke McKenna, is a part-time officer with the Village of Eagle Police Department. Writing Roelke? Well, I knew it would be a challenge. I knew nothing about law enforcement. I lurked for a while on a public online forum, where officers answered questions, but many of the responders were so sarcastic or contemptuous that I never dared ask a question.

The book is set in 1982, so I was able to glean some information from old newspapers. In 1982 the EPD was only a few years old. News articles of the day painted a picture of officers who were ready to handle any crime, but were also active members of the community.

The articles were great, but I still needed to spend time with cops. Fortunately, the chief of police in Eagle was receptive to the idea. He answered lots of questions about the role of chief, and invited me to do some ride-alongs. I’ve done maybe half a dozen now, meeting several different officers. They’ve all been generous with their time and information, and encouraging to me as a writer.

And you know what? I am in awe. The Eagle cops I’ve met are still integral parts of the community. They do outreach in the local schools. They get personally involved with at-risk young people. After a tornado ripped through the village last June, they organized a “Christmas-in-August” party for kids most affected by the storm.

They are also ready to handle whatever might come up. When the phone rings or radio buzzes, they don’t know if the call will involve a lost puppy or a murder. They help kids with homework and wade into bar fights. They see people at their worst and at their best. Some of the stories I’ve heard make my heart ache.

And the officers take a lot of abuse. I once watched a drunk driver get arrested. The man was verbally abusive, spewing profanity and promises of physical violence at the two officers involved. Later I told the cop I was riding with how horrified I was by the man’s threats. “That happens all the time,” she said. “The tough ones are when they threaten your kids.”

Photo provided courtesy of
Kathleen Ernst

Officer Gwen Bruckner, who’s been helping me recently, was recently named Wisconsin’s Female Police Officer of the Year because of her service during the Eagle tornado and it’s aftermath. It’s a well-deserved honor! She’d be the first to say she was just doing her job, though. All of the officers I’ve met in the Village of Eagle take risks every day, and deal with situations I hate to contemplate.

On my first ride-along, Officer Robert Bord talked with me about why he went into law enforcement, and why he loved his job. One comment struck me in particular: “It’s the little things,” he said. “I do lots of little things in Eagle that no one sees, no one knows about, but it makes the village a safer place. That’s satisfying.”

With help from the Eagle Police Department, I felt able to create my cop character. Because I’m planning a series, I tried to create a complex character, someone with both inner strength and character flaws; someone who could grow and change over the course of not just one novel, but many. Officer Roelke McKenna was born.

The first time my husband read a draft of Old World Murder, he asked me if Roelke was based in particular on one of the officers I’d met in Eagle. “No,” I told him. “But the officers I’ve met showed me the kind of cop that Roelke will always aspire to be.”

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Kathleen's first permanent job was at Old World Wisconsin, the setting for her debut novel. She has also written eight mysteries for young readers, several of which have been finalists for Edgar or Agatha awards.

She and her husband live in Wisconsin, with a great office space where she can watch birds from her desk. Sophie, her silver tabby, keeps her company. For more information, visit her website at KathleenErnst.com, or stop by her Sites and Stories blog.

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About Old World Murder: Hoping to leave behind her heartbreaking past, Chloe Ellefson makes a fresh start as the new collections curator at Old World Wisconsin. This outdoor ethnic museum charms visitors with authentic historical artifacts and costumed employees who churn butter, make shoes, and reenact 1870s settlement life. But Chloe's first day on the job only brings misfortune when an elderly woman pleads with her to find the priceless eighteenth-century Norwegian ale bowl that she donated to the museum years ago. Minutes later, the disappointed woman dies in a mysterious car crash.

Throwing herself into a dangerous investigation, Chloe discovers that someone is desperately trying to erase all traces of the bowl's existence by any means necessary ... including murder. With the unnervingly attractive part-time cop Roelke McKenna at her side, Chloe must solve a decades-old puzzle, catch a covetous killer, and stay alive in this deadly heirloom hunt.

For a chance to win a copy of Old World Murder, courtesy of the author, visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Kathleen Ernst: Old World Murder" contest link, and enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (0779) in the entry form. (One entry per person; contest ends November 11, 2010.)

Search an Abandoned Asylum in Haunted Halls: Green Hills Sanitarium Collector's Edition, New from BFG

Games of Mystery is pleased to announce the availability of a new mystery casual game from Big Fish Games released today and available to BFG Club members. You can find out more about these games by visiting our Mystery Games: Big Fish Download Games page or by clicking on the links provided below.

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Your boyfriend Tim, an investigative journalist, has gone missing on one of his trips. You learn he was investigating the possibility of wrong doings at the Green Hills Sanitarium. When you arrive, you find it is decrepit, as if it had been abandoned years earlier -- even though Tim's previous messages to you suggest it was operational. But now those messages have abruptly stopped coming, so you decide to do a little investigating on your own. Explore the halls of this mental asylum to find your boyfrind in this incredible hidden object adventure game!

This is a special Collector's Edition that includes extras you won't find in the regular version, such as bonus gameplay, a built-in strategy guide, original soundtrack, striking screensavers, and more!

Haunted Halls: Green Hills Sanitarium Collector's Edition may be downloaded and purchased for $13.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. A demonstration version (189.08 MB) may be downloaded and played for free for one hour; the full version is 427.39 MB.

Watch a preview video below:

Get any standard game for $6.99 with a Big Fish Game Club membership. Other benefits include the $2.99 Daily Deal, Tomorrow's Game Today, and special member rewards. And if you purchase any 6 games within a single month, you earn a free game with the Big Fish Game Club Monthly Punch Card! (Collector's Editions earn 3 punches each, half-way towards your free game!)

Read Ms. Terri's reviews of the adventure and casual mystery games featured on this site, including Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy, Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights, Camera, Curses!, Enlightenus, and many more!

Big Fish Games: Bestsellers

Big Fish Games: New releases

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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic, and board games, parties for kids and adults, and murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations!

The Price of Life by Greg McCarthy (Book Review)

The Price of Life by Greg McCarthy. Non-series. Otherworld Publications Hardcover, September 2010.

An interesting, if uneven and not very suspenseful legal thriller, with too many tangential subplots vying for the reader's attention, often at the expense of overall plot continuity.

Read the full text of our review at Mysterious Reviews: The Price of Life by Greg McCarthy.

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Mysterious Reviews is your source for the latest mystery, suspense, thriller, and crime novel reviews, edited by the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books.

New Hardcover Mysteries for November 2010

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has updated its list of new hardcover mysteries with books scheduled for publication in November 2010. Please note that some titles may publish early (and may already be available) and some may be delayed, published at a later date.

Below we're listing those authors with returning series characters, new series characters, and non-series or stand-alone mysteries in separate sections. All titles are available on our November new mystery books page (which will become the default home page for the site on November 1st).

• Authors with mysteries featuring returning series characters (in italics) this month:

Susanne Alleyn, Aristide Ravel (4th); David Baldacci, Camel Club (5th); Maggie Barbieri, Alison Bergeron (5th); Simon Beaufort, Geoffrey Mappestone (7th); Steve Berry, Cotton Malone (6th); Larry Bond and Jim DeFelice, Red Dragon Rising (2nd); Simon Brett, Fethering (11th); Nick Brownlee, Jake Moore and Daniel Jouma (2nd); Lillian Stewart Carl, Jean Fairbairn and Alasdair Cameron (5th); Reed Farrel Coleman, Moe Prager (6th); Patricia Cornwell, Kay Scarpetta (18th); Isis Crawford, Murder with Recipes (7th); Clive Cussler and Dirk Cussler, Dirk Pitt (21st); Vicki Delany, Molly Smith (4th); James D. Doss, Charlie Moon (15th); Kaitlyn Dunnett, Liss MacCrimmon (4th); Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich, Barnaby and Hooker Graphic (2nd); Charles Finch, Charles Lennox (4th); Sally Goldenbaum, Seaside Knitters (4th); Kerry Greenwood, Phyrne Fisher (18th); J. M. Gregson, Lambert and Hook (23rd); Betty Hechtman, Molly Pink, Crochet (4th); Graham Ison, Brock and Poole (8th); Peter James, Roy Grace (6th); Arthur Conan Doyle and Kelley Jones, Sherlock Holmes Graphic (3rd); Nicholas Kilmer, Fred Taylor (7th); Dennis Lehane, Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro (6th); Margaret Maron, Deborah Knott (16th); Evan Marshall, Anna Winthrop, Hidden Manhattan (4th); Patrick F. McManus, Bo Tully (4th); I. J. Parker, Sugawara Akitada (7th); James Patterson, Alex Cross (17th); J. D. Robb, Eve Dallas (38th); Kinley Roby, Harry Brock (6th); Al Roker and Dick Lochte, Billy Blessing (2nd); Priscilla Royal, Prioress Eleanor (7th); Sheldon Russell, Hook Runyon (2nd); William G. Tapply, Brady Coyne (25th); David J. Walker, Wild Onion (5th); Joyce Yarrow, Jo Epstein (2nd).

• Authors with mysteries introducing characters (in italics) in a new series this month:

Mignon F. Ballard, Dimple Kilpatrick; Gary Corby, Nicolaos; Miles Corwin, Ash Levine; Mario Reading, Adam Sabir; Brad Thor, Athena Project.

• Authors with non-series or stand-alone mysteries this month:

Glen Scott Allen, Kelley Armstrong, Jeffrey Ashford, R. Scott Bakker, Jeffery Deaver, Thor Duffin, Seth Harwood, Homer Hickam, Deborah A. Jaeger, Solomon Jones, Andrew Klavan, Henning Mankell, Cynthia Ozick, Orhan Pamuk, David Poyer, Bill Pronzini, Elliott Sawyer, Anita Shreve, Andrew Vachss, William C. Whitbeck.

For more information on any of these titles, please visit the November new mysteries page on our website. If you're interested in new paperbacks, visit The Mystery Bookshelf where you can discover a library of new mysteries, also updated with November 2010 releases.

Please visit the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books where we are committed to providing readers and collectors of mystery books with the best and most current information about their favorite authors, titles, and series.

HBO Acquires Adaptation Rights to Israeli Crime Drama The Naked Truth

Deadline|Hollywood is reporting that HBO has secured the rights to a US adaptation of the Israeli crime drama The Naked Truth. Clyde Phillips (Dexter) will write the screenplay and executive produce.

The Israeli version set is limited to two rooms within an unnamed east coast city police precinct, but the HBO version is expected to expand this somewhat, though keep all action indoors. The original storyline involves the disappearance of a 17-year-old girl -- a complex and highly discordant character, who kept a video diary and operated blogs under an assumed identity -- and the implications the case has on both the family and the officers investigating the crime.

Film Rights to the Suspense Novel The Keep by Jennifer Egan Acquired by CBS Films

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that CBS Films has acquired the film rights to The Keep, the bestselling suspense novel from 2006 by Jennifer Egan. As previously reported, attached to direct is Niels Arden Oplev, whose last effort was the Swedish-language film adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.

In a world from which escape is impossible and where the keep -- the tower, the last stand -- is both everything worth protecting and the very thing that must be surrendered in order to survive, two cousins, irreversibly damaged by a childhood prank, reunite twenty years later to renovate a medieval castle in Eastern Europe. In an environment of extreme paranoia, cut off from the outside world, the men reenact the signal event of their youth, with even more catastrophic results. And as the full horror of their predicament unfolds, a prisoner, in jail for an unnamed crime, recounts an unforgettable story that seamlessly brings the crimes of the past and present into piercing relation.

Read the first chapters of The Keep below.

Winners of the 2010 SCIBA Awards Announced

The winners of the 2010 SCIBA Awards have been announced by the SoCal Independent Booksellers. Each year SCIBA awards books in the following categories; fiction, non-fiction, mystery, art, architecture & photography, children’s novel and children’s picture book.

The winner of this year's mystery award, named after life-long Southern California resident and Edgar Award-winning author T. Jefferson Parker, is The First Rule by Robert Crais (Putnam).

The winner of the children's book award also went to a mystery, This Book Is Not Good For You, the third book in the Secret Series by Pseudonymous Bosch (Little, Brown).

Barnes & Noble Announces NOOKcolor

As widely expected, Barnes & Noble announced today in a press release its new ereader, the NOOKcolor.

From the announcement: "The first full-color touch device dedicated to reading everything and built on Android™, NOOKcolor opens up a whole new world of digital reading materials of all kinds, in addition to providing access to the largest bookstore with an unprecedented selection of over two million digital titles a single search away. Digital content — from bestsellers to favorite magazines in full color, and interactive children’s picture books and enhanced cookbooks — has never looked better than on NOOKcolor’s stunning 7-inch VividView™ Color Touchscreen."

The Wi-Fi enabled device is currently priced at $249 and is available to order with an expected ship date of November 19th, 2010.

For a current selection of mystery and suspense ebooks to purchase for your NOOK (or other ereaders), visit our own MysteryeBooks website.

ABC Extends Detroit 1-8-7, Cancels The Whole Truth

More updates for crime dramas introduced this season.

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that ABC has ordered five additional episodes for its new series Detroit 1-8-7, while separately reporting that The Whole Truth has been canceled. The latter series will continue filming the 13 episodes originally ordered, but it's not clear when or if they will air after tomorrow's regularly scheduled episode.

Fox Orders Pilot for Series Adaptation of the Locke & Key Graphic Novels

Early last month we reported that Fox had given a series commitment to an adaptation of the Locke & Key series of supernatural graphic novels written by Joe Hill and illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez.

The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed blog is now reporting that Fox has taken the next step, ordering a pilot to be filmed.

The first book of the series, Welcome to Lovecraft, tells of Keyhouse, an unlikely New England mansion, with fantastic doors that transform all who dare to walk through them, and home to a hate-filled and relentless creature that will not rest until it forces open the most terrible door of them all! The third book in the series, Crown of Shadows, published this past July.

First Clues, Mysteries for Kids: New Titles for November 2010

First Clues: Mysteries for Kids is pleased to announce a selection of new mystery, suspense and thriller books (including series books) scheduled for publication during November 2010, listed in approximate order of reading level, from books for younger readers to books for teens.

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Big Hairy Drama 
Aaron Reynolds
A Joey Fly, Private Eye Mystery, 2nd in series

A cold snap has blown into town like an unwanted house pest. But there’s only one guy in the bug city with the power to put crime permanently on ice: Joey Fly, Private Eye. He’s always on the lookout for trouble, and he runs into it when he meets Harry Spyderson, proprietor of the Scarab Beetle Theatre and director of the much-anticipated Bugliacci.

Greta Divawing, the four-winged, long-legged leading lady, has gone missing. Harry hires Joey Fly and his assistant, Sammy Stingtail to crack the case. Can they find Greta in time to save the show?

These graphic format mysteries are recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.

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Thea Stilton and the Mystery in Paris 
Thea Stilton
A Geronimo Stilton Special Edition Mystery with Thea Stilton, 3rd in series

In this exciting adventure, the Thea Sisters are off to Paris to visit Colette's fashion-designer friend Julie. But when Julie's designs are suddenly stolen, the girls must search the city of Paris to catch the thief and save the fashion show.

Readers will love following the clues to help the Thea Sisters solve the mystery!

Geronimo Stilton mysteries are recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.

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The Cupcake Caper 
Gertrude Chandler Warner
A Boxcar Children Mystery, 125th in series

It's a delicious new mystery with the Boxcar Children as they help catch a cupcake thief!

Mama Tova's shop in Greenfield is so famous that every day, people line up around the block to buy her cupcakes. But when someone breaks into her kitchen, it's clear that her secret recipe is in danger. The Aldens follow the suspects to a bake-off where they must find the culprit using their mystery-solving skills -- and their taste buds, too!

Boxcar Children mysteries are recommended for readers aged 7 to 9.

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Grounded 
Kate Klise
Non-series

After her brother, sister, and father die in a plane crash, Daralynn Oakland receives 237 dolls from well-wishers, resulting in her nickname: Dolly. But dolls are little comfort to a twelve-year-old girl whose world is rocked by the dramatic changes in her life, including her angry, grieving mother’s new job as a hairstylist at the local funeral home.

Dolly gets a job, too, where she accidentally invents a fashionable new haircut. But her real work begins when a crematorium comes to town, and someone has to save a dying business, solve a burning mystery, and resuscitate the broken hearts in Digginsville, Missouri, population 402.

This novel recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.

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The South Street Gang vs. the Coalcracker Cyclops 
Richard Benyo
Non-series

When Bob Capek’s mother is killed in a hit-and-run accident in 1956, his father moves the family from Virginia back to his hometown of Mauch Chunk, a small town in the middle of the eastern Pennsylvania anthracite coal region. From the moment Bob boards the northbound train, the life he knew before comes to an end—and another, more harrowing one begins.

Soon after arriving in Mauch Chunk, Bob is threatened by a notorious cross-town gang, the Center Street Scorpions. As if that’s not enough, Bob also initiates a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with the cruelest, most diabolical man in town, the Cyclops—a greedy mine owner who will stop at nothing, including murder, to own every coal mine in the county. But Bob is determined to put a stop to the Cyclops’s sinister schemes—and the results are explosive.

This novel is recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.

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Neil Flambe and the Aztec Abduction 
Kevin Sylvester
A Neil Flambe Caper, 2nd in series

Fresh off his success in solving the Marco Polo murders, Neil Flambé heads to Mexico City to take part in the Azteca Cocina — a two-week battle of the chefs. But things start to go wrong at the very first battle. Neil’s box of secret ingredients contains more than he bargained for. There’s a note inside, telling him that Isabella has been kidnapped. He must lose in the final, or else she’ll be killed.

The kidnappers are obviously having fun — with every ransom note they send, they include a lock of Isabella’s hair, not realizing how clever their captive really is! Knowing that Neil and his super-nose will be looking for her, Isabella does what she can to help, rubbing her hair in the smelliest thing she can find at each location. Neil can smell garbage, flowers, and animals, but this only helps him find out where Isabella has already been — not where’s she heading next!

In order to solve this mystery, Neil will need Larry's knowledge of Mexican history and Spanish, Sean Nakamura's portable forensic lab, and Angel Jicama's mentorship. He’ll have to delve into Aztec history, symbolism, and even into the real ruins that are buried under the modern city. But will he figure it all out in time?

The mysteries in this series are recommended for readers aged 10 to 12.

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Virals 
Kathy Reichs
Non-series

Tory Brennan, niece of acclaimed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (featured in the "Bones" adult mysteries by this author and the Fox television show Bones), is the leader of a ragtag band of teenage "sci-philes" who live on a secluded island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing on a nearby island, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever.

As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their newfound physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot -- if they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent.

Fortunately, they are now more than friends -- they're a pack. They are Virals.

This forensic thriller is recommended for readers aged 13 and older.

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The Back Door of Midnight 
Elizabeth Chandler
Non-series

Psychic ... or psychotic?

Anna knows her family is crazy. But when she goes to visit her aunt and uncle for the summer and learns that her uncle’s charred body has been found, her life reaches a new level of insanity. Her erratic aunt’s “psychic” abilities are exaggerated by her grief, and have become borderline violent. Alone in an unfamiliar town, Anna struggles to pick up the pieces and establish any sense of normalcy. She desperately wants to trust Zack, the cute boy next door, but even he might know more about the incident than he is letting on.

But when Anna starts feeling an inexplicable pull to the site of her uncle’s murder, she begins to believe that her family’s supernatural gifts are real after all. Torn between loyalty and suspicion, Anna is certain of only one thing: she must discover who killed her uncle or she could be next …

This novel is recommended for readers aged 13 and older.

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Conspiracy 365: November 
Gabrielle Lord
A Conspiracy 365 Thriller

The penultimate novel in this 12 volume series.

On New Year's Eve, Callum Ormond is chased down the street by a crazed man with a deadly warning: They killed your father. They'll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days. Cal is fighting for his sister's life. But nobody believes the "psycho kid" and he's running out of people he can trust. He doesn't even know which of his enemies he's facing. How many hard-won treasures will he have to relinquish in return for his sister's safety?

The thrillers in this series are recommended for readers aged 13 and older.

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First Clues: Mysteries for Kids is your source for information on over 200 mystery series for children and young adults, where each series is conveniently listed under four different age categories (New Sleuths, ages 4 to 6; Future Sleuths, ages 7 to 9; Sleuths in Training, ages 10 to 12; and Apprentice Sleuths, ages 13 and older).

New Behind-the-Scenes Featurette for the Harry Potter Films

A new behind-the-scenes featurette to the Harry Potter series of films was released on Yahoo! movies yesterday.

This video includes scenes from all the films, and provides an interesting, if brief, backdrop to the next film in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, which hits theaters November 19th.

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Visit Cinemystery to discover a library of TV and film adaptations currently available on DVD and Blu-ray disc.

OMN Welcomes Julie Ann Howell, Author of Haunted Echoes

Omnimystery News is thrilled to welcome Julie Ann Howell as our guest blogger. Julie Ann is the author of Haunted Echoes (The Peppertree Press, January 2010 Hardcover, 978-1-936051-69-4), an old-fashioned ghost story.

Today, Julie Ann provides some background information for her book. And she''s also providing our readers with an opportunity to win a copy of her book. Visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Julie Ann Howell: Haunted Echoes" contest link, enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (1779) for a chance to win! (One entry per person; contest ends November 09, 2010.)

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Photo provided courtesy of
Julie Ann Howell

Ask a writer what they would rather be doing at any given time, and most often the answer would be “writing.”

Most writers dream of “just writing,” as their characters, settings and story lines are always swirling around in their heads. Having the luxury of putting those down on paper is the best feeling of accomplishment.

In my case, I am a night owl through and through. I love writing in the middle of the night when the house is quiet and my thoughts can actually make it to paper. I find it truly inspiring—and just a little bit scary, which is even more fun.

There are so many things that go through my head when I sit behind my keyboard. I vividly remember typing the “Whodunit” part in my book and being incredibly shocked at what my fingers typed. I even found myself saying “What??!!” out loud, questioning myself and staring at my fingertips in disbelief. I actually had no idea what was going to happen, which is great, as most writers map out their entire books before they type a word. But I like to let my fingers do the work and the characters do the talking. That is what works for me.

My readers often ask me how I came up with my setting for Haunted Echoes. I love small towns and lighthouses and since I wanted my character, Sarah Reddington and her dog Dickens, to stay in a Victorian style Bed and Breakfast, I chose Maine. I did my research and discovered a sleepy little town on the craggy shore just outside Portland. Cape Elizabeth was the perfect place for my characters to hang out for 200 pages. I have never been to Maine and I would love to visit someday, however I think it’s best to keep the image of how I actually see it strictly fiction.

Haunted houses intrigue me. I suppose you can say that ghostly tales were instilled in me since I was a little girl, compliments of my great-grandma whose tales sort of followed me as a grown-up. I know there is another haunted tale in me: I can feel it. Just recently I had one of my readers email me his quote about what he thought after reading my novel. It was short and to the point. Simply put he said. “The only thing I have to say is when is the sequel coming out?” This was intriguing to say the least, a great compliment. I had never really considered a sequel until I read this quote.

And now, the answer is yes. Words and characters are now whispering in my head preparing to form sentences onto paper for the sequel to Haunted Echoes. The working title, Whispers From Beyond ...

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Julie Ann is not only the publisher and founder of her own literary magazine and book publishing company, she is also an avid speaker where she has the opportunity to travel to a variety of writers groups, schools and organizations. The author of several children's books, Haunted Echoes is her first novel. Visit her website at JulieAnnHowell.com.

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About Haunted Echoes: Sarah Reddington traveled to far-away Maine to escape the chaos of the windy city. She wanted to concentrate on completing her novel and enjoy the peaceful quiet of the Atlantic's craggy shore. Although she was the only registered guest staying in an elegant, but quaint Victorian Inn, subsequent events quickly placed her writing on hold. The haunting cries that echoed around her made her question not only her own mortality, but made it difficult for her to decipher between fiction and insanity.

For a chance to win a copy of Haunted Echoes, courtesy of the author, visit Mystery Book Contests, click on the "Julie Ann Howell: Haunted Echoes" contest link, and enter your name, e-mail address, and this code (1779) in the entry form. (One entry per person; contest ends November 09, 2010.)

Join the CSI Team to Solve Five New Cases in CSI: Fatal Conspiracy

Five connected cases allow players to experience an authentic crime-solving video game with real CSI characters, heart-pounding interrogations and enhanced graphics, in CSI: Fatal Conspiracy, which releases tomorrow, Tuesday October 26th, 2010.

Be prepared to work with your CSI partners to solve murder cases and uncover the fatal conspiracy behind the crimes you investigate. Collect evidence at the crime scene, search for items that might be related to the case and unveil hidden evidence through observation. Interview witnesses and suspects with an improved interrogation system for more realistic character interaction. Analyze the evidence with the latest technology, and use new ultrasound and high-tech SLR camera technology in the game. Share your evidence with high-resolution photos.

Four versions are being released: CSI: Fatal Conspiracy (Windows PC version), CSI: Fatal Conspiracy (Nintendo Wii version), CSI: Fatal Conspiracy (Xbox 360 version), and CSI: Fatal Conspiracy (PlayStation 3 version).

Watch the trailer for the game below:

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Games of Mystery is your source for mystery-themed video, electronic and board games, parties for kids and adults, murder mystery weekends and mystery getaway vacations, and more mysterious fun!